Whatevershebringswesing | ||||
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Studio album by Kevin Ayers | ||||
Released | November 1971 | |||
Recorded | March–August 1971 | |||
Studio | Abbey Road Studios, London | |||
Genre | Progressive rock, Canterbury scene, psychedelic rock, experimental rock | |||
Length | 36.09 | |||
Label | Harvest | |||
Producer | Kevin Ayers, Andrew King | |||
Kevin Ayers chronology | ||||
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Singles from Whatevershebringswesing | ||||
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AllMusic |
Whatevershebringswesing is the third solo album by Kevin Ayers, on Harvest Records.
In 1971, Kevin Ayers started recording what would become his most acclaimed album, Whatevershebringswesing accompanied by members of Gong and his previous backing band The Whole World. Praised by NME, Record Mirror and Rolling Stone, the album realized all the musical aspirations Ayers had harboured since the inception of Soft Machine.
As with most Ayers albums, a collision of disparate styles confronts the listener but in this instance they work to extremely powerful effect. The title track with Mike Oldfield's guitar accompaniment and Robert Wyatt’s wracked harmonies would become a template for Ayers subsequent '70s output.
The album opens with "There Is Loving/Among Us" accompanied by David Bedford's dramatic orchestral arrangement. There follow the vignettes "Margaret" and "Oh My" where Ayers juxtaposes terse lyrics against measured backing. "Song from a Bottom of a Well" marries an explosive arrangement, again featuring Oldfield, to Ayers’ cryptic lyric "This is a song from the bottom of a well / There are things down here / I've got to try and tell". The title track is notable for Oldfield's extended bass solo at the beginning, while "Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes", a flirtation with Ayers' love of early rock and roll, would become a staple of his live set for years to come, a song he would re-record twice that decade.
Many critics and fans have cited Whatevershebringswesing as their favourite Ayers album and it remains to this day a best seller in his catalogue.
All tracks written by Kevin Ayers except "Among Us" by David Bedford and "Champagne Cowboy Blues" by Mike Oldfield .